North American Waterways
The Erie Canal, the Rideau Canal and the Intracoastal Waterway.
Get a Free Barge or Canal Cruise QuoteNorth America has its own historic canals and protected waterways, and they offer a very different trip from a Mississippi paddlewheeler or a Columbia River cruise. Some you explore by self-drive boat, others by small ship.
The Erie Canal, New York
Opened in 1825, the Erie Canal linked the Hudson River at Albany with Lake Erie at Buffalo and helped make New York City the nation’s leading port. Today it is part of the New York State Canal System and a favorite with boaters, cyclists on the Empire State Trail and day-trippers in canal towns like Fairport, Pittsford, Lockport and Seneca Falls.
The classic multi-night Erie Canal trip is a self-drive canal boat. Companies such as Erie Canal Adventures in Macedon and Mid-Lakes Navigation rent boats for three-, four- and seven-night trips, with training before you leave the dock. You work through the locks with the help of the lock tenders and tie up in a different village each night.
The Rideau Canal, Ontario
The Rideau Canal runs between Ottawa and Kingston through lakes, rivers and hand-operated locks. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the oldest continuously operated canal systems in North America. Rental boats and small cruise operators use it in summer; in winter, part of the canal in Ottawa becomes a famous skateway.
The Intracoastal Waterway
The Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway is a chain of rivers, bays and canals that lets boats travel the East Coast without going offshore. American Cruise Lines and other small-ship operators sail parts of it on Southeastern itineraries through the Carolinas, Georgia and Florida. Expect marshland, barrier islands and historic ports like Charleston and Savannah.
Combining Waterways
Some travelers pair a New York canal trip with a small-ship cruise on the Hudson River or the Great Lakes, or a St. Lawrence and Thousand Islands itinerary. Small-ship lines change their US routes from year to year, so our cruise advisors at Mister Cruise check the current season’s itineraries for you. For US river cruises more broadly, see our sister sites US River Cruising and Small Ship River Cruising.
Season: the New York canals and the Rideau Canal close to navigation over the winter. Plan for late spring to early fall, and check each year’s opening dates.
Self-Drive Tips for the Erie Canal
- Allow for the locks: each one takes time, and traffic can bunch up on summer weekends.
- Watch the low bridges — some fixed bridges on the canal have limited clearance, which is why canal boats are built low.
- Plan overnight stops at canal-town docks, many of which have showers, restaurants and walking access to the village.
- Bring bicycles or rent them locally: the towpath trail runs alongside much of the canal.
Plan a North American Waterways Trip
Erie Canal, Rideau, Intracoastal or a small-ship cruise — tell us where and when, and we will put options together.
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